PBL Overview

What is PBL?
Problem-based learning is an
instructional strategy (a curricular
framework) that, through student and
community interests and motivation,
provides an appropriate way to “teach”
sophisticated content and high-level
process… all while building self-efficacy,
confidence, and autonomous learner
behaviors.
 PBL is
an instructional method that challenges
students to "learn to learn," working
cooperatively in groups to seek solutions
to real world problems.
 PBL
• engages students' curiosity and initiates
learning the subject matter.
• provides excellent opportunities for
students to think critically and analytically,
and to find and use appropriate learning
resources
• promotes autonomous learning
 Research on PBL
• Students show significant learning gains in
experimental design through a PBL approach
(VanTassel-Baska, et al. 2000)
• Students show enhanced ‘real world’ skills with no
loss in content knowledge as a result of using PBL
(Gallagher & Stepein, 1996; Gallagher & Gallagher,
2003)
• Students & teachers are motivated to learn using
the PBL approach (VanTassel-Baska, 2000)
• Students show enhanced higher order skill
development using PBL over other approaches to
teaching science (Dods,1997)
Students should be given problems – at levels
appropriate to their maturity – that require them to
decide what evidence is relevant and to offer their
own interpretations of what the evidence means.
This puts a premium, just as science does, on
careful observations and thoughtful analysis.
Students need guidance, encouragement, and
practice in collecting, sorting, and analyzing
evidence, and in building arguments based on it.
However, if such activities are not to be destructively
boring, they must lead to some intellectually
satisfying payoff that students care about.
-- from Science for All Americans, Project 2061
 Characteristics of PBL
• Learner-centered
• Real world problem
• Teacher as tutor or coach
• Emphasis on collaborative teams
• Employs metacognition
• Uses alternative assessment
• Embodies scientific process
Center for Gifted Education
College of William and May
 Characteristics of PBL
• Students are in charge of learning
• Requires problem finding
• Requires students to make connections &
create ‘new’ knowledge
• Requires deep thinking
• There is no single right answer
 Characteristics of PBL
Have we considered all possibilities?
What assumptions are we making?
Why is this strategy not working?
 PBL Roles
Teacher: Student:
• Present an ill- • Create a precise
structured problem problem statement
• Act as a • Find information to
solve the problem
metacognitive coach
• Evaluate possible
solutions
• Create a final product
 Scientific Habits of Mind
Cognitive skills, affective skills, and attitudes:
 Curiosity
 Creativity
 Objectivity
 Openness to new ideas
 Skepticism
 Tolerance for ambiguity
 Self-Directed Learning…
Grasping Metacognition
Self-monitoring performance with an intent to self-assess
Recognizing gap in knowledge and set up learning
agenda
Identifying learning resources:
print
human
technology-based
Identifying skills needed to use resources wisely and well
Sorting through information to determine needed
information
Questioning appropriateness of personal biases
Applying information appropriately
 Problem Based Learning
• State the problem
• Decide what information you need
• Conduct information quest
• Complete scientific investigations
• Review data & summarize findings
• Communicate problem resolution
 What’s an “Ill-Structured” Problem?
 More information than initially is
presented will be necessary to…
• understand what’s going on.
• know what caused it to be a problem.
• know how to fix it.
 There’s always more than one right way
to figure it out.
• Fixed formulas won’t work.
• Each problem has unique components.
• Each problem solver has unique
characteristics, background, experience.
 What’s an “Ill-Structured” Problem?
 The definition of the problem shifts
or changes as new information is
gathered.
 Ambiguity is a part of the
environment throughout the
process.
• Data are often incomplete
• …or in conflict
• …or unavailable
• but choices must be made, anyway.
 Ill-Structured Problems
• Ambiguous
• No single “right” answer
• Data is often incomplete
• Definition of problem changes
• Information needs change or grow
• Stakeholders
• Deadline for resolution
 Problem Diagnosis and
Solution Building
• Ill-structured problem is presented
– What is going on?
– What do we know?
– How can we find out?
– Where does the information lead
us?
– Do we have enough information?
– Is the information reliable?
– What’s the problem?
• Problem is represented
Dealing with real-world problems
Wheel of
Problem •Learn about the
problem
•Assume roles
Based •Define
stakeholders
Learning •Identify what you
know
•Prepare final product
•Identify what
you need to
•Decide on the best State the know
way to communicate Problem •Develop a plan
findings and Develop
to find
recommendations Communicate Need-to-
information and
Problem Know
Resolution Problem current
Board
Based research
Learning
•Organize and Review and Conduct •Use varied
analyze data Summarize Information approaches
Findings Quest
•Make inferences Conduct •Use multiple
specific data sources
•Draw conclusions Investigations
•Redefine the
•Identify a problem
solution/resolution •Select specific inquiry
questions.
•Use methodology of
discipline.
•Collect data.

Robbins, 2008
 Need to Know Board
What do we What do we How can we
know? need to know? find out?